The present invention relates to an airbag including an opening and closing vent and a discharging gas control member configured to restrain gas from discharging from the opening and closing vent. More specifically, the present invention relates to an airbag configured in such a manner that the opening and closing vent is closed until an occupant comes into contact with a surface facing the occupant of the inflated airbag, and that the vent is opened when the occupant comes into contact with the surface of the inflated airbag and the surface of the airbag is pressed in a direction opposite to an inflating direction of the airbag. The present invention also relates to an airbag apparatus having the airbag.
In the present invention, the term AF05 type occupant dummy is an occupant dummy for a vehicle collision experiment which corresponds a 5 percentile small size adult woman specified in United State regulations, and the term AM50 type occupant dummy is an occupant dummy for a vehicle collision experiment which corresponds a 50 percentile adult man which has a larger size than the 5 percentile small size adult woman.
It is widely known to providing a vent on an airbag and allowing gas to be discharged from the interior of an airbag out of the airbag via the vent when the vehicle occupant or the like comes into contact with the inflated airbag to receive the vehicle occupant or the like softly.
In the US publication US 2006/0151979A1 (Patent Document 1), a configuration in which the vent is opened and closed according to the position of the occupant when the airbag is inflated is shown.
In Patent Document 1, a vent is provided on a side surface of an airbag, and a vent flap is attached so as to cover the vent from the inside of the airbag. This vent flap is joined at one end thereof to a portion in the vicinity of the vent by stitching or the like and is not joined to the airbag at the other end. A strap is provided at the other end side of the vent flap. The distal end side of the strap is connected to a surface facing the occupant of the airbag when inflated. A middle portion of the strap is inserted into a loop provided on an inner surface of the airbag.
When the airbag is started to be inflated, the vent flap is drawn out of the airbag via the vent, whereby the vent is opened.
In a state in which the occupant is positioned at a normal seated position, that is, so-called an in-position, the airbag is inflated to an inflation-completed shape before the occupant comes into contact with a front surface facing the occupant. At this time, the entire part of the vent flap is pulled by the strap and is pulled inwardly of the airbag, and the vent flap is pushed against the vent by a gas pressure in the airbag, thereby closing the vent. Accordingly, discharging of the gas from the vent is restrained.
In a state in which the occupant is positioned forward of the normal seated position, that is, so called an out-of-position, the occupant comes into contact with the surface facing the occupant of the airbag before the airbag is inflated to the inflation-completed state. Therefore, the vent flap is not pulled inwardly of the airbag by the strap, and the vent is kept in the opened state. Accordingly, the gas is discharged from the airbag via the vent, and the airbag loses its reaction force.
Even in a state of the in-position in which the occupant is positioned in the normal seated position, the vent is preferably opened to allow the gas to be discharged from the airbag after the airbag has received the occupant. In this case, the vent is preferably opened in an early stage after the occupant has come into contact with the airbag.
The occupant fastened with a seat belt and seated on a seat is constrained at a lumbar part from moving forward by a lap belt upon collision of the vehicle, so that an upper half body rotates downward relative to the lumbar part. Therefore, the head portion of the occupant comes into contact with the surface facing the occupant of the airbag in an earlier stage than other portions.
It is an object of the present invention to provide an airbag in which an opening and closing vent is opened soon after an occupant restrained by the seat belt and seated on a seat comes into contact with a surface facing the occupant of the inflated airbag upon collision of the vehicle, and an airbag apparatus having the same.
Further objects and advantages of the invention will be apparent from the following description of the invention.